A Change is Brewing – the VLT AutomationDrive FC 302 – Making Beer Smarter

Within industry today terms such as ‘Smart Maintenance’, ‘Smart Factory’ and the ’Factory of Tomorrow’ are becoming more and more commonplace.

These terms are the ideal end goal for many businesses, ultimately leading to a highly efficient and well-run operation.  Making the transition to a Smart Factory isn’t without its challenges and can feel more like a leap into the unknown, rather than a small step in the right direction.

Brewing giant HEINEKEN decided that to secure a more robust and sustainable future in its Netherlands based Den Bosch facility, required stepping into unknown territory by using the innovation offered by Danfoss VLT drives with integrated condition-based monitoring (CBM) capabilities to reach their goals.

By 2025 the European beer market is expected to have grown by a further 15.2%, HEINEKEN knows that to meet this expected growth their production lines must always be on task with all assets delivering a reliable and consistent performance 24/7.

VLT AutomationDrive FC302

Producing beer on a large scale can be demanding, and with all applications containing difficult to access motors Heineken faced costly and lengthy disruptions whenever a machine fault occurred.

Danfoss was tasked with helping the brewery to:

  • Increase uptime
  • Lower overheads
  • Improve management of spare parts and stock
  • Access new levels of machine data
  • Boost application and system performance

Technology with the Edge

Danfoss Drives proposed HEINEKEN install VLT AutomationDrive FC 302 drives with embedded intelligence, connectivity, and sensor capabilities. Condition-based monitoring signals were integrated into the brewery’s maintenance system using edge computing.

The brewery also utilised some vibration sensors and Danfoss assisted further with project scoping, commissioning, training, as well as holding workshops.

As the VLT drives also support existing industrial ethernet communication interfaces and software such as VLT Motion Control Tool MCT 10, meant that HEINEKEN didn’t have to invest in new parallel systems as part of the upgrade.

Jan Brouwers, Detail Engineer at HEINEKEN’s Den Bosch said – ‘Condition Based Monitoring is a great addition to an already very good drive. Now, HEINEKEN is standardised on the VLT AutomationDrive FC 302.’

VLT AutomationDrive FC302

An Optimised Conclusion

The VLT Motion Control Tool MCT 10 plug-in was a game changer, enabling seamless commissioning with consistent parameter settings, with the power to gather more critical application data in real time than ever before. HEINEKEN, thanks to the efforts of Danfoss Drives, was able to optimise its Den Bosch production line while solving all its pain points while building a total value proposition.

As a result, HEINEKEN retrofitted the rest of its drives in its other facilities with condition-based monitoring functionality. The Den Bosch upgrade proved that condition-based monitoring is no longer a premium product meant for a few critical assets, but an affordable solution for all.

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Kempston Controls is committed to finding you the ideal solution for your application. Call us today on +44 (0) 1933 411 411, email us at sales@kempstoncontrols.co.uk, or alternatively contact us here, we will be happy to help.

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